|| *Comments on the 2010 Heluva Good! Sour Cream Dips 400:* View the most recent comment <#90> | Post a comment <#post> 1. RLewis9 posted: 06.13.2010 - 5:08 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Cup debut for Landon Cassill. Denny Hamlin dominates a pretty forgetable Michigan race. 2. Mike posted: 06.13.2010 - 5:18 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) First top 10 for Dale Earnhardt Jr since Texas. It was nice to see him smiling after a race again. 3. RLewis9 posted: 06.13.2010 - 5:26 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Adam Sandler and Kevin James....lol, might be the most entertaining command I've seen. JJ Yeley made his 100th career Cup "start." Why in the world are Max Papis and Kevin Conway start and parking? They both have sponsorship from Geico and Extenze, there is no funding excuse there. I also read on Jayski that the 46 team found a sponsor for this race, but they still parked their car. It's obivious the teams claiming it is a lack of sponsorship is just baloney. There isn't a big enough pay difference from 32nd and 42nd to make this teams want to race, they would rather just collect an easy check for nothing. I figured the start and parking wouldn't be bad with both of Phil Start and Parksons' cars missing the race we would get only two or so cars doing it, but we still had SEVEN cars pull off. Also, Casey Mears continues to show he's a hack. I hope Red Bull finds a new driver for Loudon. 4. Smokefan05 posted: 06.13.2010 - 5:44 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) A couple of years ago a race that MIS lasted about as long as this one did. Very few cauions and then it was over. At the start the racing was great then it went as most MIS races do. And for those who complain about Debris cautions, they had 2 and it didn't change the outcome. Denny was going to win no matter what happened. So go complain about something else. Congrats to Denny 5 wins and he "if" he can keep this up, and threat to Jimmie and crew in the Chase. 5. RaceFanX posted: 06.13.2010 - 5:51 pm Rate this comment: (0) (1) It always disgusts me when someone wins at M.I.S. in a Toyota. Has anyone checked to make sure the throttle's not just glued wide open on Denny's car lately like Toyota's road cars? Ironically, Adam Sadler was also the grand marshal for this race in 2006 when he was promoting his film "Click." Kasey Kahne, was finished second in this race, won that day in a blue #9 painted to also promote that movie. 6. Bronco posted: 06.13.2010 - 6:03 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Best part of the race was the "start your engines" command. Other than that, a snoozer, ends up being the fastest race run so far this year. Casey Mears wrecks his teammate and scores a DNF with the team that had won 3 consecutive poles and last August's race at MIS. Scott Slow had every right to be mad. Even Ford's new engine didn't do anything to improve the awful performance of the Fords since only 1 out of 8 cars finished in the top 10, at a track they used to own. Good recovery for Marcos Ambrose to finish 15th after a spin. 7. Anonymous posted: 06.13.2010 - 6:18 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) Yeahhh...Ummmmm...Move along nothing to see here. Race started at 1:20 and was done before 4:00pm. Definitely not into short races. 8. AJ posted: 06.13.2010 - 6:25 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Look, we all know Casey Mears is a nice guy, but it's obvious right now that he's just not the right person to be in that car. After Ekstrom races next weekend (and I think he'll do a pretty damn good job at Infineon), they need to find someone else to run the car for the rest of the season. It's embarrassing when your two cars are running outside the top 25 and one takes the other out, especially when Vickers was so fast at Michigan in the past. 9. Ryan posted: 06.13.2010 - 6:30 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Conway did not start and park, had legitimate issues. Papis did start and park 10. AJ posted: 06.13.2010 - 6:32 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Also, there are very few races at Michigan that aren't boring; that's just the nature of the track. The fact that Hamlin was so dominant made this one even more of a snoozer. We've been spoiled this season with the number of G-W-C finishes we've had, and by how there really hasn't been another race where only one car hit their setup on the nose all day and drove off into their own area code. Kurt was up there for a little while but he still had nothing for Denny. 11. Eric posted: 06.13.2010 - 6:51 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Fastest Michigan cup race since the caution free race in 1999. I an waiting for "the_man" to post some fake David Ragan quotes from the race. What got into Casey Mears today. First he got into his teammate, than he got David Ragan on pit road. David was around the top 10 when Mears got him after Ragan left his pit stall. 12. 18fan posted: 06.13.2010 - 6:55 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Kevin and Kyle keep shadowing each other as Kyle finished 2nd and Kevin 4th last week and this week Kevin finished 19th and Kyle finished 20th, so neither of them makes a significant gain in points. However, those two need to start winning because Denny has the bonus points right now. I expected Jimmie to be way more of a factor than he was, running 8th-12th all day before a four tire change on the last caution brought him up to sixth. 13. Jeremy Siple posted: 06.13.2010 - 7:09 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) @#3 Max Papis parked because, while part of the deal with GEICO was that the logos always be on the car, they didn't actually receive funding for this race. (in other words, it's a crappy deal) Kevin Conway wasn't a start and park, he had a legit engine failure. 14. Red posted: 06.13.2010 - 7:46 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I loved how Denny said he was saving his tires because he knew there would be a debris caution. Note to NASCAR: When your fake cautions are so predictable that the race winner plans his strategy around them, you have a credibility issue. Apparently I'm the only one, but I thought this race was actually halfway decent. At least it didn't turn into a fuel mileage snoozer like most MIS races. I can't believe Bobby Labonte is willing to run for a team that start & parks. That's his third S&P this year. Bobby, do your dignity a favor and just retire already. I know he's still 12th in points, but Mark Martin has really fallen off a cliff since the spoiler change. He hasn't even sniffed the top 10 in who knows how long, and this is at tracks he WON at last year. I'm hoping against hope that Mark can win a championship before he retires, but it ain't gonna happen at this rate. Smokefan05 - Who are you to tell others what they can and cannot complain about? Give me a break. 15. RCRDude posted: 06.13.2010 - 7:47 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) In my opinion, the only about this race, is that the people that didnt make the race, werent gonna run more than 20 laps 16. Smokefan05 posted: 06.13.2010 - 7:56 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "Smokefan05 - Who are you to tell others what they can and cannot complain about? Give me a break." 2 debris cautions and people are complaing about them. Yet the race had as much green flag racing as i've seen in a long time and isn't that what the fans want? Yet the last debris caution didn't screw Denny out of his well earned win and race toke less than 3 hours. If Denny had gotten screwed by the last caution then complain away but since he didn't then there is really no reason to complain about debris cautions (in this race). IDK it gets real tiresome when the same horse is beaten day in and day out, But that is what NASCAR fans do best. The outcome didn't change so why complain? Can someone answer me that? 17. Baker posted: 06.13.2010 - 8:09 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Denny is on a roll right now much like Kyle Busch was in 2008. If those 2 hit it right then Jimmie Johnson is finally going to fall this year. Tony Stewart gets his 2nd straight top 5 finish with great tracks coming up for him. It looks like he's a good bet to make the chase after all, but I'm still not holding my breath. Joey Logano with another great run ends up 10th after some of those 4 tire guys pass him in the last 15, but he is coming around and could threaten for the chase if he keeps up the Top 10s ever week. 18. Anonymous posted: 06.13.2010 - 8:12 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) You do know that the winner isn't the only one effected by cautions, right? The two point leaders went from top 15 to barely top 20. You complain about IndyCar fans and now you complain about NASCAR fans. 19. the_man posted: 06.13.2010 - 8:14 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) David Ragan on a 34th place finish: "We thought he knew we were only coming in for two and would be cleared out of there, but he didnā??t stop and just knocked our right-front tire off and that really ended our day. We were strong all weekend and itā??s not the finish we wanted. We worked very hard all weekend and itā??s disappointing that cost us a solid finish.ā? "I am waiting for "the_man" to post some fake David Ragan quotes from the race." @Eric, I get my Ragan quotes from the Roush Fenway Racing website. You can look back at their post-race reports for Ragan from previous races and see that I took the quotes straight from those reports. Here's the link to the report (notice it says he finished 24th) for Michigan on Ragan: http://www.roushfenway.com/story/pit-road-incident-demolishes-hopes-top-10-finish-leaving-ragan-24th-michigan 20. Critic posted: 06.13.2010 - 8:49 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) When I read Lewis' post (3), one I firmly agree with, I had a feeling Jeremy Siple would appear to clarify and I was right. Jeremy, I have nothing against you, but are you only here to make a martyr's cause out of Prism, Germain, Conway and the rest? Are you employed by one of the start and park teams and feel a need to improve their reputation? Most people I've encountered are either against this manifestation of a field filler or simply apathetic, but I have never met anyone so faithfully committed to their cause as you are. I'd simply like to know why; I respect, if strongly disagree with, your well established position. 4: Illegitimate cautions that undermine the credibility of the sanctioning body are never defensible and always worth criticizing. Motor racing is a meritocracy, and anytime this sport flaunts that ideal and impacts someone's event because they want more spice in the pursuit, I will call it out. I also trust in the maturity of everyone here to determine what's worth raising in a discussion and what isn't; you are not the final arbiter on that. There's nothing more to say. 21. Neal posted: 06.13.2010 - 9:24 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I watched about 15 laps of the bi-annual Michigan Parade of Horsepower. There's more passing in a funeral procession. Why don't they do the world a favor and drop a date from Michigan and Fontana and cut the remaining races down to 100 miles? MIS and Fontucky are two skull-f**kingly-boring tracks. 22. DaleJrFan19 posted: 06.13.2010 - 10:19 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Really boring race, but Jr got a solid finish on my birthday, so I won't complain...but seriously...it was boring... 23. Red posted: 06.13.2010 - 11:23 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "The outcome didn't change so why complain? Can someone answer me that?" If a referee makes a horrible call in a basketball game, and it doesn't affect the outcome, does that suddenly make it okay? When fans voice their displeasure over debris cautions, it's not about the result, it's about the principle. When the sanctioning body compromises the integrity and purity of the competition, that is WRONG, regardless of the final result. If you don't understand that, maybe you ought to watch the WWE instead. 24. joey2448 posted: 06.14.2010 - 1:57 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) #14 - i think fuel mileage races are great to watch, such as last years michigan race where both jimmie and biffle ran out of gas on the final lap. i'd almost go as far to say they're better than GWC's.....also, i don't understand how people say the races today are too long, and yet (#7) says they aren't into short races... also, the command to start their engines was the best ever 25. Critic posted: 06.14.2010 - 3:22 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) The disintegration of Bobby Labonte's Cup career is difficult to watch. Like his brother: class, integrity, respect, ability; on the other hand, the desire has clearly gone out and, though he's one of a few remaining connections to the early '90's, I'd prefer it if he upheld his reputation and retired as soon as possible. There is nothing more painful than watching a successful competitor try futilely to recapture past glory (Richard Petty), and prostituting himself out due to his past champion's provisional ala Terry seems to be the next rung in his career. I hope he has the introspection and grace to avoid that fate. Labonte should have never gotten himself into this situation, as with the ad hoc Hall of Fame arrangement last year, but the end of the season is his out. I like having him as apart of the series, but I don't want his career to become a veritable Old Yeller, prolonged suffering and all; he's been too good for that. 26. Ivan Balakhonov posted: 06.14.2010 - 3:30 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) 1. Casey Mears must go. I don't about possible substitution but 83 not only runs like junk lately but as we see is willingly takes out his teammate. 2. Yes, I know Ambrose was hit from behind, but Marcos caused more cautions this season than Sideways Sam and it says something. What a bad luck for 47 team. 3. Race Control is soooo predictable. After the final green-flag pit stops me and a friend of mine were discussing when the debris caution would appear. We both knew it was inevitable. NASCAR continues to lose its credibility. This season I can't take races seriously, I'd better go watch 1998 or 1999 Michigan races without ridiculous attempts to manufacture drama. 4. Racing yesterday was plain boring. Was yawning all the time. If not for participating in some fantasy league I'd gladly skip it to watch FIFA World Cup instead. 27. Tom Logano is a douche bag posted: 06.14.2010 - 3:46 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Gibbs cars in the points standings: 2. Ky. Busch 3. Denny Hamlin 17. douche bag junior Reminds me of another junior from last year. While his teammates are dominating, he's stuck in mediocrity in the same equipment. Yes, this kids going to take the NASCAR world by storm! Sorry kid, but daddy can't buy your way to wins in this series! 28. Tom Logano is a douche bag posted: 06.14.2010 - 3:53 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) "Race Control is soooo predictable. After the final green-flag pit stops me and a friend of mine were discussing when the debris caution would appear. We both knew it was inevitable. NASCAR continues to lose its credibility." NASCAR is all about giving the fans a good show. Brian France up in the control tower, would pull his glass eye out of it's socket and throw it out on the track if thats what it took to bring out a yellow and give the loyal NASCAR consumer the good show they paid to see. 29. Giligan posted: 06.14.2010 - 4:07 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) "Casey Mears must go. I don't about possible substitution but 83 not only runs like junk lately but as we see is willingly takes out his teammate." I wouldn't hold your breath on that happening any time in the next month. The Firecracker 400 and Brickyard is coming up in the next 5 races and everybody knows Casey gets done in the crown jewel events, just look at his World 600 win and Brickyard pole. 30. Giligan posted: 06.14.2010 - 4:08 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) on the above post, I meant to say gets IT done in the crown jewel events. 31. joey2448 posted: 06.14.2010 - 4:36 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) boy, if denny hamlin keeps up this rapid-winning pace, there's a slight chance he'll beat jimmie johnson in the chase... 32. martin-n-rusty posted: 06.14.2010 - 5:17 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) I have problems with "debris" cautions myself, however... 1. We saw what happened to Ryan Newman, and his car hitting a piece of aluminum. Imagine that now hitting a more popular driver. Let's hear the cry for more debris cautions then. 2. If NASCAR throws no "debris" cautions, then what is the complaint? THE RACE IS TOO DAMN BORING!!! Honestly, NASCAR is stuck between a rock and a hard place with this issue, and no matter what they do, they cannot win. 33. martin-n-rusty posted: 06.14.2010 - 5:20 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Also, I'm tempted to say something about posts 27 and 28, but I think it's nothing more than a troll 34. Dodge posted: 06.14.2010 - 7:26 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Conway's DNF was legit. Why would they JUST park him? Hello, anybody home up there? This was only like his second DNF. 35. Fun Gus posted: 06.14.2010 - 9:37 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) come on nascar fans, its cars going around in circles...i mean what do you expect? with that said, i thought the racing was pretty good 36. Frank posted: 06.14.2010 - 10:29 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Really shocked about there are guys who stands for fake cautions. OK, if NA$CAR want some cheap show, let they introduce the rule "at least 15% of the race must be under yellow" and will turn on yellows in races like this one. Personally it's very sad for me that about 5 years ago Formula One fans punted NASCAR fans for "caution just for entertainment". They were wrong THAT days but they're quite right now. I will rather watch boring fair races instead of last-lap carnages cause of artificial field compression like it was at Pocono or at Dover Nationwide this year. 37. Horace posted: 06.14.2010 - 10:59 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Its kinda what the Chase is...a "debris caution" except nascar indirectly admits it there 38. icazzy posted: 06.14.2010 - 11:39 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) "2. If NASCAR throws no "debris" cautions, then what is the complaint? THE RACE IS TOO DAMN BORING!!!" That's the reason NASCAR throws "debris" cautions in the first place - they're too bored to do anything else except bunch up the field and wait for something to happen. 39. Jordy posted: 06.14.2010 - 12:41 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Denny Hamlin wins a thrilling race at MIS. It is his 13th career win and 5th this season. This is the most wins any driver has had through 15 races since Greg Biffle in 2005. 40. Schwab posted: 06.14.2010 - 1:22 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) First time that Denny Hamlin has won consecutive races in his Sprint Cup Series career. 41. AutoRockinRacing94 posted: 06.14.2010 - 4:02 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) ARE YOU KIDDING!!!!! THREE FULLY SPONSORED CARS (Max Papis, Kevin Conway, and J.J. Yeley) PARKED THEIR CARS!!!! And James Finch cared less on Landon!!!! Let the boy enjoy his Cup debut because he may never run again!!!! WORST RACE FROM A START AND PARK POINT OF VIEW!!!! 42. Talon64 posted: 06.14.2010 - 4:57 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "It is his 13th career win and 5th this season. This is the most wins any driver has had through 15 races since Greg Biffle in 2005." Kyle had 5 wins in the first 16 races last year. Those were break-out years for Biff and Shrub that fell short of the championship but Denny's carrying this over from last year, it's his 9th win in the last 31 races. That gives me more hope that Denny can continue to contend for wins and make a run at the championship. It's JGR's 84th career win and 5th at Michigan. Kurt and the #2 have really picked it lately too, he's on pace for a career high in top fives this year after tying for his career high in top tens last season. He's now 5 top tens shy of the 150 milestone mark. He also won his 12th career pole for this race. JG had his best run since Darlington, he was never good enough to win but he was always solidly in the top five so a good start-to-finish race for him. It was great to see Tony run so well, Darian made great decisions on pit road to take two tires a couple times to give Tony good track position and the car was always good enough to stay there. Jimmie's dominated Michigan the last two years but he was pretty off by his standards, he didn't lead a lap and needed the last caution and the fresh tires to finish as high as he did. Jimmie and Dale Jr. were the big winners out of the last caution, they pitted for tires and got solid top tens out of it. Jeff Burton about maintained while Biffle lost a top five, Logano lost a couple spots and Carl Edwards ended up 12th even though I'm not sure if he pitted or not. It was still good runs for Logano and Allmendinger but lacklustre for Biffle and especially Edwards considering how good Roush is here. Allmendinger's never had back-to-back top tens but 10th and 11th place finishes in the last two races is as close as you can get. Red Bull Racing has had it's 2nd case of teammates wrecking each other in the last few weeks, although Vettel and Webber cost the team a 1-2 in Turkey while Mears and Speed were running like crap (Speed's words! lol) when Mears took out Speed. I can defend Mears' talent but screwing up like he did this weekend doesn't do anything to help defend his case for being in the #83. He'll continue to be in the car after Ekstrom races in Infineon but RBR should consider alternatives later in the year. Aric Almirola's the first name to come to mind, if HMS thinks he's good enough to stand in for Jimmie while Chandra's close to having the baby then RBR should give him a shot. Aric's been great in the Trucks this year. 43. I Seize the Day posted: 06.14.2010 - 5:04 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Good race. I enjoy Michigan racing because of the draft, and I would like Fontana if it didnt replace Rockingham! Talon, I would really like to see Bobby in the 83 this year. I don't think it will happen - Bobby doesn't have that "Red Bull attitude" and I really believe he doesn't give a crap anymore. Really sad to see him start and park, its killing his DNF statistics. 44. Debris posted: 06.14.2010 - 5:13 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) They should determine the champion by whoever completes the most laps at seasons end, that way it is like one big race. To make this work, the wave around and lucky dog rule would need to go down the crapper. 45. AutoRockinRacing94 posted: 06.14.2010 - 6:17 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) DON'T PARK JAN!!! DON'T PARK JAN!!! I lost little respect to Phoenix Racing by not letting Landon run the whole race. He should of, sponsor or no sponsor. 46. Talon64 posted: 06.14.2010 - 6:43 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Cassill got 116 total laps of track time between the 3 practice sessions, qualifying and the race. 47. Mamorese posted: 06.14.2010 - 7:48 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Since when did everyone start watching racing for "the show" and not to see how their favorite driver does? As for NASCAR, it honestly hasn't been a legitimate sport since 2004/2005. I mean come on, when the race winner encourages bogus cautions in his post race interview because its good for the fans to see a good "show", i'm not sure how anyone can take it seriously. Another odd note of interest, people love to blame NASCAR's top officials for the decisions to throw show cautions; however the people making those decisions (Helton, Hunter, Darby) have been actively involved in the sport for decades. Hell, Mike Helton takes the brunt of the blame most often, yet he was in race control during races in the 1990s and never made those decisions then. So I'm not really sure when or why they deviated from the norm and started altering races from a competition standpoint. 48. Cooper posted: 06.14.2010 - 9:09 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I feel bad for those who go to some of these races. They spend they're hard earned money and time off to see a moving precession line. Brad has been so bad these last couple of weeks, I almost turned the channel with 20 to go. But when the caution flew, I felt I had to watch because of the possibilities of a smorgasbord of confusion. A couple of big wrecks and lucky dogs, and boom a Top 20. Without the caution I can honestly say I would've turned the channel... I consider myself a hardcore fan but when the top 14 guys are my least favourite drivers and my guy is a moving obstacle it's unbearable. Let's say the average ticket is $70. The race lasted 153 minutes. Every minute that went by it cost nearly 50 cents. That is not a lot of bang for your buck. Being close to Canada many fans went across the border and with all the rain and under par racing, many will not go back. Now Old Bobby Labonte....Red Bull needs to put this man in the seat immediately. The possibilities are endless!!! Labonte-Forgotten, Old and no wings Give him Red Bull-Watch the man fly, cracking off top 10's and top 5's Put him in commercial saying it was the red bull Old people everywhere will be chugging down the stuff. Everyone Wins. 49. martin-n-rusty posted: 06.15.2010 - 12:02 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) 47. I will say, it seems as if since Helton had his current position in NASCAR, that was the point when stuff started changing for the worse. Yeah, you can give legit arguments for other people in NASCAR, like Brian France, but I still point to Helton becoming President in NASCAR as a point when a lot of this stuff started to turn (and not to mention, just looking at Helton, there is just something about him that I do not like. I dunno what, but there is something about him I just do not like at all.) 50. WillG_46 posted: 06.15.2010 - 12:02 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Adam Sandler and Kevin James are embarrassments to all human life. 51. Jeremy Siple posted: 06.15.2010 - 12:07 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) #20, Critic. I defend them because I've always been a fan of the underdog. No, I do not work for an underfunded NASCAR team, but some of my biggest heroes were the guys like Dave Marcis, James Hylton, J.D. McDuffie, Wendell Scott, etc. who did the most they could with what little they had. That's exactly what these guys do. When they have the funds, they race and do the best they can. When they don't, they at least have the balls to show up at the race track and let the sponsors know they're out there and they're not giving up on their dreams, no matter how far off they are. I admire that. But I also respect your opinion. 52. Anonymous posted: 06.15.2010 - 12:53 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Calling start and parks underdogs is like pissing on Alan Kulwicki's grave. 53. Critic posted: 06.15.2010 - 1:28 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Mark Webber doesn't have that Red Bull je ne sais quoi either, but he's managed to find a home with their Formula One team, Marko and Horner's seeming preference for Vettel aside. Bringing in Labonte to substitute would be a terrific move -- we could at least see if he has any of his competitive form left -- but I doubt Buckler would grant his release. The past champion's provisional is too healthy a carrot to let go of, and I suspect Labonte's docility will prevent him from forcing the issue and resigning if they are unable to legitimately race. 54. Critic posted: 06.15.2010 - 1:46 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Motor racing has the capacity to be entertaining, but it is not a form of entertainment. Consider it from the position of expectation and desire: when I follow a race, I expect the competition to be legitimate and equitably officiated by a sanctioning body, but I only hope to see an enjoyable spectacle. If it isn't, I can accept that -- just like I know I go to a baseball game with an equal chance of seeing a rout or a tense pitcher's duel. NASCAR, whether intentionally or through their own incompetence, has created an atmosphere where every event must meet their definition of entertaining, and they are willing to sacrifice their sport's credibility with duplicitous manipulations in order to achieve that objective. The milquetoast new fan thus expects every race to be enthralling, and that simply isn't possible, or the gems of each season would no longer be special. What is the result of this conundrum? Just like the ill-fated gambler who bets gradually higher in order to win back a lost principle, you are forced to intervene more brazenly to cast the veneer of entertaining over as many events as possible. Maybe they began by throwing cautions after benign spins ala Logano at Pocono to bring the field back together. Innocuous enough, right? Before too long, they were breaking precedents and calling them for oil on the circuit or foam padding off the racing line. But that wasn't sufficient, so they began creating them -- "we see something in turn three", for example, and the contrived competition cautions because of weather or a canceled practice session that serve no purpose. It wouldn't surprise me if one day we have caution lights that come on with no explanation, and everyone obligingly merges at the start finish line and waiting for the signal to restart, accepting it as part of the sport. That will not be a championship I could ever support. If Hamlin did in fact endorse the caution with seventeen to go in his interview, I suggest he get his priorities in order -- "the show" should not be any concern of his. No one should ever tacitly apologize for winning by a large margin. 55. Critic posted: 06.15.2010 - 1:47 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) That should be 'waits' instead of 'waiting' on my fourth to last line. 56. martin-n-rusty posted: 06.15.2010 - 3:00 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) 54 - They have always, in the past, almost always had competition cautions if there were certain situations in a race (a issue with the track, so teams could get a good bearing on whats going on with their tires, lack of practice, etc.), so that does not bother me at all, and if there has been a situation where that has happened, and a competition caution had not happened, it was because a caution for a different reason occurred right before the competition caution. 57. Critic posted: 06.15.2010 - 3:10 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) It wasn't meant to be a completely accurate depiction, but you get the general idea. 58. Neal posted: 06.15.2010 - 8:15 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Everyone loves to dogpile on the start-and-park teams. Yeah it's kinda shameful but ya know what? Unlike their lazy-assed, entitled Top 35 brethren, the start-and-park teams actually have to worry about qualifying for the goddamn race. Kyle Busch and his team could sit around the garage area scratching their asses and playing tiddly-winks until Sunday Morning and they'd still be in the race. The "Past Champion's Provisional" came about when Richard Petty started missing races long after his prime, and the Top 35 rule is designed to protect sponsors, both at the expense of the fans (whose numbers are dwindling by the week). NO DRIVER should be guaranteed a starting spot. I don't care WHO you are. If you or your team f*&k up so badly that you miss the race, tough shit. Buy your way in. 59. RLewis9 posted: 06.15.2010 - 11:57 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) The 46 team got a sponsor for this race and still start and parked. Sponsorship is not what is keeping these teams from racing, they are just looking to exploit NASCAR. NASCAR should change their rules, if you pull out of the race, you must present an actual problem with your car to an official or you do not receive a paycheck for the race. 60. 12345Dude posted: 06.15.2010 - 12:09 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Wow that race was boring. Jeez why do TNT get all the bad tracks? Atleast it should pick up next week. The debry caustions were so stupid. How can we take nascar serious? When the racing is boring they just decide to bunch up the field. It's not good for the sport it makes nascar look like a joke. 61. DaleSrFanForever posted: 06.15.2010 - 1:04 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Not much to say about this race that hasn't already been said. I watched it at the ambulance station, got dispatched for a call with 40 laps to go, missed the finish, and wasn't even disappointed. Obviously the #11 team has it together. They are fast everywhere. I still the the #48 team will win the cha$e. When they fall behind like this, they usually come roaring back with a vengence. I think it will be like Kyle in '08, without the complete meltdown. In fact, here is my prediction for the final cha$e standings this year: 1) JJ, 2) Kurt Busch, 3) Gordon, 4) Hamlin. 62. Talon64 posted: 06.15.2010 - 5:03 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) This was Denny Hamlin's 13th career Cup win, 84th win for Joe Gibbs Racing and 5th at Michigan. This is Kahne's first top ten since Texas and his best finish since finishing 2nd at Talledega in the Chase last season. It's his 13th career runner-up finish, versus 11 wins. Kurt Busch won his 12th career pole. It's his 3rd straight top ten which is a season-high, and it's his first top five at Michigan that isn't a win (2 wins in 19 starts). This was Jeff Gordon's 6th top 4 finish of the season. It's his 3rd straight top five at Michigan and his 18th top five in 35 starts. Tony Stewart has back-to-back top fives since Kansas and California in the Chase last season, and just the second time he's had back-to-back top tens this year. It's his 10th top five in 23 starts at Michigan. This is just Jimmie's 7th top ten in 17 starts at Michigan and 3rd in the last 7 races. He's led 427 laps in this stretch, including 279 of the 400 laps run last year, but didn't lead a lap here which ended a 6 race streak. Dale Earnhardt Jr. has his first top ten in 7 races, 8th in 22 starts at Michigan. Jeff Burton had his first top five start of the season and first since starting 5th at Richmond in May 2009. It's his 5th top ten in the last 6 races but his first in 15 races at Michigan (but 5 finishes of 11th in that stretch). Greg Biffle got his 9th top ten in 15 Michigan starts; he's completed all but 9 laps there in his career, and it's only the 6th time he's failed to lead a lap. This is Joey Logano's 4th straight finish of 13th or better. He's only one top ten shy of his 2009 rookie total. AJ Allmendinger gets his best career finish at Michigan in 6 starts. Carl Edwards has his 2nd 3 race streak of finishing outside the top ten this season, and it ends his 6 race streak of top tens at Michigan. But it's his 13th finish of 16th or better this season. This is Matt Kenseth's 6th straight finish of 17th or better but in which he only has two top tens. It's his third straight race at Michigan outside the top ten, longest of his career. But he made up the most ground from the start of the race, 25 spots from 39th to 14th. Marcos Ambrose gets his first top 15 finish in the last 5 races, ending a streak of 3 straight DNF's due to crashes. David Reutimann gets his 7th straight top 20 finish, a career best. 19th for Harvick is his worst finish of 2010 that isn't due to mechanical troubles. Kyle Busch's 8 race top 10 streak comes to an end with a 20th place finish. 2008 Nationwide ROTY Landon Cassill made his Cup debut in the #09 Phoenix Racing Chevy. The team S&P'd so Cassill DNF'd in 38th. But he was the 3rd best qualifier among the GOGH drivers for a team that's missed 6 of 15 races this season. 63. martin-n-rusty posted: 06.15.2010 - 5:09 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) 59 - agreed. I would rather have a field of 37 cars willing to race a full distance, rather than a field of 43, with 6 teams gaming the system. 64. Jeremy Siple posted: 06.15.2010 - 5:57 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) #59 Whitney Motorsports has run races in the past. Chances are Promise Village didn't pony up enough to pay the tire bill. I think it's easy for people to sit back and criticize. If you think you could do any better, you try it. See how long you stay in business running a race team out of your own pocket. 65. John Royal posted: 06.15.2010 - 6:54 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) If you want to get rid of the start and parkers, just remove all price money from positions 35-43. 66. Mark O. posted: 06.15.2010 - 7:38 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) So...John Royal...let's say Dale Jr., Smoke, or another top name gets wrecked on the first lap. Do you think they should receive $0 too? 67. martin-n-rusty posted: 06.15.2010 - 10:36 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Mark O. My answer is an astounding YES!!! 68. Anonymous posted: 06.15.2010 - 10:47 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) You know Siple, most of us don't try to do something we don't have the money to do. There's plenty of series they can race in, but those series wont pay $71,112 to run 8 laps. 69. Bronco posted: 06.16.2010 - 1:38 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) "See how long you stay in business running a race team out of your own pocket." Seems to have worked out pretty well for Todd Bodine and Germain racing, what with winning a race and leading the points with only one finishes outside the top 5. "You know Siple, most of us don't try to do something we don't have the money to do. There's plenty of series they can race in, but those series wont pay $71,112 to run 8 laps." Well said. If you can't pay for fuel, tires and a crew, then stay home. 70. Rocky posted: 06.16.2010 - 1:42 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) #64, none of these "teams" are running a race team. They are exploiting NASCAR. You don't deserve to be paid for running ten laps and parking your car for no good reason. In no other profession do you get paid for not even trying. I have nothing against small underfunded race teams, but I do have a problem with teams exploiting NASCAR. Phil Start and Parksons has two cars start and parking week in and week out. There is no excuse for doing it with TWO damn teams. With all the paychecks they collect from two cars, they should have enough to have one car try and run the whole race. They are just looking to make a buck off NASCAR. 71. joey2448 posted: 06.16.2010 - 4:46 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) just learned that casey mears will most likely not be returning to the #83 after sonoma.....they ought to put bobby labonte in that car! i bet he could do well with a team that doesn't start-and-park, maybe get a few top-10's.. 72. martin-n-rusty posted: 06.16.2010 - 6:17 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Hell, the way Mears had been performing, a new driver is what they need 73. Talon64 posted: 06.16.2010 - 4:30 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Reed Sorenson's going to be in the #83 for New Hampshire, no word yet if he'll continue beyond or if RBR will resort to a revolving door of drivers. Aric Almirola would've been my first choice, but Aric left the #09 so he could focus on the Truck championship so I don't know if RBR considered him. Sorenson was my second choice though, same as Aric in that he's gone back down to the lower series and has been doing a really good job. Still only 24 and already has his ride with Braun that could become a Cup ride in the future if Braun Racing goes Cup racing full time. 74. Bronco posted: 06.16.2010 - 6:08 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Scott Riggs would have been the best guy to put in the #83. If anyone cares to remember, he put the #90 car in the race in his first try, while Mears made one start in that ride with 6 total attempts. He also had three top 15s in John Wrecks Weekly's old ride and had two 9th place runs in two races in the #21. If that isn't enough to qualify for a substitute role, I don't know what is. Aric would be a solid choice, except his Truck races would conflict with him running the remaining Cup schedule. 75. Talon64 posted: 06.16.2010 - 6:49 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Sorenson's also shared the #32 Braun car with Vickers this year and had similar results so RBR must be hoping that Sorenson will fit in better with the set ups. I've never been that high on Riggs, he's done a good job this year but Sorenson has more COT experience. 76. martin-n-rusty posted: 06.16.2010 - 7:39 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Sorenson would of been a much better choice, for the reason Talon explained. Ill probably still hold off on picking Sorenson, just to get a feel for how he does, but I think that (or Scott Riggs) should of been Red Bull's first choice, not Mears. Other than start and park rides, I think its safe to say Casey Mears cup career is about dead. 77. I Seize the Day posted: 06.16.2010 - 8:18 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) thank god martin-n-rusty. but damn, i was really hoping (but knew it wouldnt happen) that bobby would drive it 78. Eric posted: 06.16.2010 - 8:26 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Casey Mears cup career is over in terms of competitive rides. I think Casey Mears might be the worst driver to win the 600. Reed is worth a shot for Red Bull racing since he is young. I think the 83 car is his best ride of his cup career. I think Reed is the best driver available not named Aric Almirola. 79. Eric posted: 06.16.2010 - 8:28 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) What I meant to say is Reed is the the best driver available not named Aric Almirola for the 83 ride. Bobby Labonte isn't available and Aric is the best available driver as a result of that. 80. Art D posted: 06.17.2010 - 2:58 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Yuck, I think I've had enough of Ham(lin) and cheese sandwhiches from Denny's 81. Art D posted: 06.17.2010 - 2:59 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Great! More green eggs and Ham on the menu, again. 82. luigistarted06 posted: 06.17.2010 - 10:32 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) I would have totally put Aric Almirola in the #83, he's an extremley talented kid, he would be a contender if they gave him 2 or 3 races to adjust for sure. I saw an interesting article that said they should put a different driver in just about every race. Swap between Nelson Piquet, Dave Blaney, Paul Tracy, and a few other names that would be interesting. Of course theres no way that will ever happen, but it would be interesting to see how it would turn out. 83. I Seize the Day posted: 06.17.2010 - 12:14 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Almirola would have been a good choice, but it wouldn't have worked since he has agreed to be on standby for Jimmie. Sorenson is definately who i thought red bull would choose, but I also thought Mike Skinner would have gotten some consideration given his past with Red Bull 84. Talon64 posted: 06.17.2010 - 5:27 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I still think it's hard to expect anything out of someone subbing in for an injured driver since the team can't afford to put all of their resources behind a temporary replacement. The last time I can remember an injury replacement running well was Kenny Wallace in the #1 DEI car in 2001 when he won the pole and finished 2nd at Rockingham (Steve Park won the first Rockingham race that year). But he didn't run that great in the rest of his races for a team that was top 10 in the standings before Park got hurt. If Vickers' blood clot problems become more serious than first thought and he might not EVER come back then it'll be a different matter entirely. But as it stands it looks like RBR is ready to have Vickers back for the 500 next year. 85. RCRandPenskeGuy posted: 06.18.2010 - 3:52 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Almirola definitely would be a good choice, but I don't see him working around his Truck schedule just to be a fill-in. It wouldn't be wise. Sorenson's the best available choice they could find for now, I believe. I can't stand Denny Hamlin, but he's on quite a roll this year. I wouldn't be surprised if he mirrors Kyle Busch's 2008 season, but without the Chase choke. Denny will probably end up in the top-5 at season's end. Roush seems to have become the next RCR, not really contending for wins but rather riding around and collecting points. I really don't see them improving as the season goes on. 86. DaleSrFanForever posted: 06.18.2010 - 4:42 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "So...John Royal...let's say Dale Jr., Smoke, or another top name gets wrecked on the first lap. Do you think they should receive $0 too?" Honestly, for the mega teams, their race purse winnings are just a drop in the bucket compared to the money they get from sponsors and manufacturers. If they finish that far down the standings, the money they get doesn't make a huge difference in the team's resources. So yeah, cut the purse money off there. 87. Daniel posted: 05.21.2012 - 4:23 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) In using fastest 43: #66 Dave Blaney Out using fastest 43: #34 Kevin Conway 88. Jonathan posted: 06.03.2013 - 4:12 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Absolutely boring race. Only good thing was the command and McMurray getting the outside pole and leading the first lap. 89. Nascar Lead Lap Points posted: 04.18.2016 - 3:07 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Crew Chiefs #36 Tommy Baldwin, Jr. #55 Zach McGowan #66 Bill Henderson 90. Rich posted: 12.06.2020 - 4:46 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Adam Alexander, Wally Dallenbach and Kyle Petty were the commentators. Phil Parsons, Ralph Sheheen, Matt Yocum and Marty Snider were the pit road reporters. Larry McReynolds was the in-race analyst. Lindsay Czarniak was the studio host. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ *Post a comment:* Your comment may not appear immediately - all comments must be approved by the moderator. Name: Comment: